and#8216;The Things They Carriedand#8217; author speaks to high school students

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TAHOE/TRUCKEE — Thirty-five North Tahoe students traveled to Incline High School and listened to “The Things They Carried” author Tim O’Brien speak about his book, war experiences, and writing in a private presentation last Friday.

“The Things They Carried” is a work of fiction with interrelated stories based on the author’s experiences in the Vietnam War. The book is read by students in Mr. Freeman’s senior English class.

O’Brien spoke of his war experiences, his reactions to being drafted into a war in which he did not believe and the art of writing war stories that promote peace. He also discussed his belief that any politician who promotes a war should enlist and fight the war. Finally, students commented about O’Brien’s honest opinion of war, and the author’s need to speak out, and bear witness to war.

Students were captured by the emotions the presentation brought out in the author, especially when he read excerpts. “It was as if he was experiencing the war all over again,” said one senior. O’Brien also spoke about the difficulty of saying “no” to going to Vietnam, citing expectations from his family and the confinements of being from a small town.

Later, O’Brien spoke to an audience of more than 300 at Sierra Nevada College.